Verasion Underway

Nature is in control. That is the undeniable reality of the wine business.

When the sun broke through the fog this morning around 1030a, it immediately drew me outside for a stroll around the vineyard. In the 10 days since my last post about cool temps and rising concerns about ripeness, the blogobabble has continued to bubble.  Some critics have noted the likelihood of lower alcohols, not neccesarily a bad thing, though in more temperate Coombsville one of our struggles is finding the magic balance between fruit and acid which often means a little extra hang time on the vine.  Others have already written off the vintage for late harvesting grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon.  Talk to industry veterans though and they seem much less fazed. Vineyard Manager Mike Wolf is waiting for verasion to proceed a little further before sending the crew back into the vineyard for some “draconian” thinning.  In the meantime, the color transformation continues…